Technical repeat, no change to text.

By Gilles Guillaume

PARIS, March 10 (Reuters) - Renault RENA.PA plans to sell half of its Renault brand cars overseas by 2030 and grow volumes by over a fifth, it said as it unveiled a five-year strategy aimed at remaining competitive in a tough global market.

The French automaker is facing intensifying competition from low-cost Chinese players including BYD 002594.SZ and Chery 9973.HK as well as traditional rivals like Stellantis STLAM.MI in its key European market, creating mounting price pressure that has eroded profit margins.

Renault, the smallest of the legacy carmakers, said it would rely largely on in-house technology to develop competitive European products. And it will lean on partners like China's Geely 0175.HK to significantly boost its international sales in South America and South Korea.

NEW MODELS, MORE SALES OUTSIDE EUROPE

Renault plans 36 new models in the next five years, including 14 outside Europe, compared with just eight in the previous five years.

It aims to sell more than 2 million Renault-brand vehicles per year by 2030, up 23% from 1.63 million cars sold in 2025. Half of those it aims to sell outside Europe versus 38% last year.

"We will show that we are here for the long term and we will become the benchmark for the European automotive industry on the global stage," CEO Francois Provost, who has led the automaker since last year, said in a statement.

Renault is in better shape than five years ago, when heavy losses forced it to retreat from several overseas markets and cut thousands of jobs.

But competition is heating up. And a pullback in support for electric vehicles in the United States under the Trump administration has triggered huge writedowns and abrupt strategic reversals at some rivals.

Renault, which has no U.S. or Chinese presence, said it will continue to develop EVs, planning 16 pure electric models by 2030, or 44% of its planned models. It will also use its Horse Powertrain joint venture with Geely to develop a smaller engine for hybrids. Renault has leaned on hybrids to manage weaker-than-expected European EV demand.

A new EV platform under development for 2028 will include a range-extender version with a backup gasoline engine to extend range to up to 1,400 km (870 miles).

The automaker will unveil the Bridger, a small SUV for the Indian market, at its research-and-development centre outside Paris later on Tuesday alongside the Dacia Striker, a crossover estate to compete with the Volkswagen Group's VOWG_p.DE Skoda Octavia.

(Reporting by Gilles Guillaume; Writing by Dominique Patton; Editing by Joe Bavier)

((dominique.patton@thomsonreuters.com))